Calgary Herald from Calgary, Alberta, Canada • 46

6 HERALD MAGAZINE-Safurifor, Mor. r. 95J Tarn IFopf Tine TTaMung By TOMMY PRIMROSE A if i i Jt J. 'Look TTo Yona Laurels, it t' (frW-" An oddity of the Peace River district is this desolate-appearing area which once provided an almost in-exhaustable supply of tar for roofing and other pioneer building uses. The site is that of a gas well drilled shortly after the First Great War.

It is located about 19 miles north of the town of Peace River, along the banks of the river which bears the same name. The well, unsuited to commercial production, was capped in 1955 by the Oil and Natural Gas Conservation Board. For more than 30 years prior to the capping, the well spewed salt water and small granules of tar onto an area approximately 200 yards square. Enterprising residents constructed wooden pits of varying sizes throughout the area of spray. Combination of salt water tar would collect in the pits, wh'ri the tar 7 i 'A 4 Thomas of Calgary won the 1958 of contesting were common in the rodeo arena for the cowgirls of yesteryear.

For a good many years cowgirls have rarely appeared in the infield except as spectators. There would probably be little desire on the public's part to see cowgirls returning to the rodeo arena in the rougher and more dangerous events. There is an expressed desire, however, to see the girls back contesting and barrel racing seems to fill the bill. Barrel racing is not a sissy game, it requires an abundance of courage and skill and there is also a considerable element of danger always present. Barrel racing is one of the best demonstrations of horsewomanship, Western style, possible to present.

It is also dashing and extremely colorful by way of the girls' costumes. Strict Rules The CBRA is not an organization hastily thrown together without a great deal of thought and planning. A' set of laws and rules have been drawn up which sound almost like a young ladies finishing school. The rules are extremely strict and specific about manners and conduct in and out of the contesting arena. Failure to live up to the rules brings forfeit of membership.

Rodeo producers and managers are showing considerable interest in girls' barrel racing and many plan to include it in arena events during the coming season. It is felt the event will be both colorful and thrilling for spectators and in parades and grand entries the colorfully dressed girls will provide glamor and variety. As performed now barrel racing is strictly a tiined event with one girl performing a clover leaf dash around three barrels at one time. There is a desire among some rodeo managers and producers to run races with two or more girls competing at the same time. It is lt this manner of running the race would provide more spectator appeal.

Such a manner of racing would probably have to be restricted to races In outdoor arenas. Many of the races are now performed indoors. The new event seems to be well on the way to becoming an established rodeo attraction and before long Canadian cowgirls may become ai famous and well known as Can-'ada's top cowboys. "Look to your laurels, cowboys; the cowgirls are riding into the arena." A. CHAMPION COWGIRL: Viola barrel-racing contest.

Danny Boy. Miss Isabella Hamilton of De Winton, runner-up in the Miss Calgary Stampede contest of 1953, was in second position with her mare Misty. Viola Thomas came back to win third place with another of her horses, Tiny. Mrs. Ingrid Hewitt, 1957 champion, took fourth place in 1958.

The first annual banquet, dance and presentation of trophies was held in Fort Calgary House, Exhibition Grounds, Calgary, Oct. 22. Viola Thomas, the high point winner, wes awarded a soecially designed barrel racing saddle by Bill Cross of Cross's Mens' Wear, Hanna. Isabella Hamilton was awarded a trophy buckle by Dr. L.

A. Sparrow of Calgary. For third place Vitfa Thomas was awarded a trophy buckle by Marcel de Paris Jewellery of Calgary. Miss Olga Lenek of Hubalta awarded a trophy buckle for fourth place. The first annual general meeting of the association was also held Oct.

22 and a new slate of officers was elected for the coming season. Isabella Hamilton was elected president, Ruth Denbury of Calgary was elected vice-president and Olga Lenek was elected secretary-treasurer. Julie Akerman of Calgary was named publicity manager for the CBRA and a membership committee of the following was set up: Vivian Thompson of Forest Lawn, Viola Thomas and Ema Ashback-er of Calgary. Two Divisions The new executive is working towards more races for the high point trophy during the coming season. Contesting has been split into two divisions, a closed division for girls riding horses they own and have trained, and an open division for girls riding horses trained or owned by some other person.

An objective for 1959 is to hold more Tac-es for girls just beginning barrel racing and to attract more girls to the sport. Membership in the association has crown rapidly lately and now totals 60 members. Members are located throughout Southern Alberta and extend into Saskatchewan. As the sport becomes more widely known and appreciated it is expected membership will grow a great deal larger. In the early days of rodeo women took part in a great many events.

Lady bronc riders, plain and fancy ropers, trick riders and other types The High Cost Of Flares It's been a good many years since the cowgirls have had an opportunity to demonstrate their skill nnd ability in a rodeo arena. For the past 30 years or more the cowboys have had the arena all to themselves. The cowboys have had the thrills, spills and the winner's money along with the crowd's applause while the cowgirls sat out the arena perform-pnces and at best basked in the reflected glory of a cowboy-boyfriend, or a contesting brother or father. From now on the cowboyi are going to have to divvy-up the spotlight and a share of the purses with the cowgirls. The cowgirls got together and formed a barrel racing as-soclation'and the event promises to become of major Importance in rodeo programs throughout Western Canada.

Down in the United States the girl barrel racers have been taking rodeo by storm and the event is one of the most popular on the program. Since our cowboys have long proven they are as good as the U.S. cowboys there Is no reason to fpel our cowgirls aren't every bit as good as their sisters below the In any event the girls are out to give rodeo patrons an event which has thrill and color and no small amount of ability connected with it. What Canadian rodeo fans have so far seen of girls' barrel racing they like and next season there will be a great deal more of th event to see. Horse-minded girls have been taking a prominent part in stake bending races and barrel races for quite a number of years but it wasn't until a year and a half ago that girls' barrel racing began operation on an organized basis.

Formed In 1957 The Canadian Girls' Barrel Racing Association was first formed at the Calgary Spring Horse Show of 1957. A recent re-organization has changed the name to Cowgirls' Barrel Racing Association and the girls like to refer to it as the CBRA. Girls interested in forming an association- were brought together at the 1957 horse show by Mrs. Dean Mayberry of Hanna. Twenty interested girls attended the first meeting and 11 joined the newly formed association.

Willa Beeby of Calgary was the charter president. Marion Mas-sey of Thelma was vice-president and Mrs. Mayberry was the secretary-treasurer. The executive set up a schedule of races for 1957 and races were held at the Springbank horse show, Calgary fall horse show, I.ethbridge rodeo, Wyalta Davs and the Cochrane gymkhana. A system of 10 points for first place, eiqht points for second, six for third and four for fourth was set up to score the contestants.

Mrs. Ingrid Hewitt of Calgary was the 1957 champion and Miss Elizabeth Stevens of Calgary was the runner-up. The past season saw the association organized to the extent where more races and more contestants took part. Bigger horse shows and rodeos were included in the 1958 barrel racing agenda. In 1958 the girl barrel racers contested at the Calgary spring horse show in the Stampede Corral, rodeos at Ponoka, Medicine Hat, Leth-bridge, Cardston the Imperial Ranch, Byemoor, and the Handhilli Lake rodeo.

Miss Vio'a Thomas of Calgary won the 1958 championship with her horse t. 4i -4 7 X' PEACE RIVER TAR SANDS remaining after evaporation of the water. For many years this tar was collected in barrels or gallon cans and sold in nearby centres for 75 cents a gallon. All vegetation was killed by chemicals, but remains in an excellent state of preservation. Know Alberta A further 10 miles down the Peace River seepage of natural gas through water has been burning for more than 30 years.

There are two main concentrations of fire on the water of an inlet. Gas pressure coming out of the ground forces the water up to a height of approximately five feet. 1. a it -v- TURNER VALLEY FLARE: A the new Hoard issued orders for the curtailment of gas wastage. Flaring wasn't ended by any means but it was reduced and in 19-13, it became policy to inject some of the surplus gas back into selected wells in the Turner Valley field.

The Act was replaced and changed from time to time but its purpose was essentially the same as in 1938, among other things, "to prevent the wte of the oil and pas resources of the Province." The title, as from 1W7, vas the Oil And Gas Conservation Act. ANSWER TO TODAY'S POZZlt mm I BIT Mss I iIF Uberta Government Phots Flames leap as high as twenty and thirty feet in the air. Gas bubbles are also visible along the nhnre of the river and extend about ten feet into the stream. There are other numerous bubble pockets on the sand which will burn if ignited. Millions of cubic feet of have been burned siiu'e the well was drilled about 1920.

Efforts of the Te-troleum and Natural Gas Conservation Board to have the well capped and fire extinguished in 1955 were not successful. At one time the gas "blew" si high as 40 feet in the air, spray ing the surrounding area. Chemical elements killed all vegetation, coaU ing it with a white substance similar in appearance to slack lime, salt and water or The site is known as the "30-mile 1 8. CVRANT mEWAN I 1 shameful waste resources. But, unfortunately, the flaring of gas didn't end.

Even in one of the newer fields, Pembina, the loss up to December 31, 1957, was approximately 68 billion cubic feet, about two and one-half times Calgary'i 1957 consumption. CREAM WANTED Prompt ond Efficient Grading Testing Market Prices Guaranteed Model Dairies CALGARY LleenM Ne, 66 -X. The growing importance of Alberta's gas, oil and other resources is well publicized. Not as much is written and told about certain forms of wastefulness, losses from unwanted burning of forests, for example, and losses from deliberate burning of natural gas at the wells. Turner Valley, its gas-fed flares lighting night skies in a spectacular way, was for quite few years the scene of the most shocking destruction.

The wastage of Turner Valley gas, largely through burning, exceeded a trillion cubic feet between 1922 and 1952. Such total of natural gas flared and wasted in the Valley field in the period stated was roughly 40 times as much as the 26 billion cubic feet used within the City of Calgary In the year 1957 In other words, it was enough to meet the city'a need for 40 years at the 1957 rate of consumption. Stated another way, it was enough to supply the Province of Alberta for eight years at the 1957 rate of use. But it was that distressing situation in the gas-rich Valley field which led to the formation of Al-berta'a Oil and Gas Conservation Board. In 1931, the City of Calgary petitioned for a reduction in gas prices and the tc.i-.ical evidence about gas wastage submitted to the Board of Public Utilities at that time brought demand for checks on the lavish burning.

Early in 1932, the Turner Valley Gas Conservation Act was passed by the Alberta Legislature and a three-man board was named to administer it. But authority to restrict production was challenged in the courts and the board had a short life. Acting in advance of the legislation, however, Canadian Western Natural Gas Company undertook to reduce waste by pumping a certain amount of surplus summer gas from Turner Valley Into the Bow Island field to increase the reserve in the latter. By April, 1938, the Gas Company could report that: "Ten and one-half billion cubic feet of Turner Valley gas has been forced, under pressure, into the old Bow Island field to provide an emergency reserve for the company's system in Southern Alberta." This polirv, good as it was, did nothing for the man? wells from which the company did not draw. The need for effective controls became more urgent and on April 7, 1938, when the Petroleum and Gas Conservation Act was receiving legislative approval, The Calgary Herald editorialized: "At long last legislative action Is being taken to deal effectively with the waste gas problem in this province." Three months later, the new Conservation Board, with W.

F. Knodt as chairman, met in Calgary. Many tit the immediate problems were with crude oil but before lonf 7 U' U. THI CBRA EXECUTIVE FOR 1959 ond the winner for the 1958 season ore shown obove. Back row, left to right, Willa Beeby, Calgary, 1958 president, Isabella Hamilton, De Winfon, 1959 president of the Cow.

fiiils' Carrel Racing Association, Viola Thomas, Calgary, 1958 chornpion barrel racer, Julie Akerman, Colgory, publicity manager. Front row, left to right, Olga Lenek, Hubalta, secretary-treasurer, Vivion Thompson, Forest Lown, membership ond Ryth Denbury, Colgory, vice-president..